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H 


DR.   McCOSH'S   WORKS. 


FIRST     AND      FUNDAMENTAL    TRUTHS.       Being    a   Treatise    on     Metaphysics. 

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OUR  MORAL  NATURE 


A  BRIE*1  SYSTEM  OF  ETHICS 


JAMES   MoCOSH,    DD.,  LL.D.,  D.L. 

EX-PBESIDENT  OF  PBINCETON  COLLEGE 


^UNIVERSITY 


NEW   YORK 
CHARLES    SCRIBNER'S    SONS 

1892 


T3TI0  7.S- 
Mi7 


COPYRIGHT,  l802,  BY 

CHARLES   SCRIBNER'S  SONS 

So  5h 2. 


TROW   DIRECTORY 

PRINTING  AND  BOOKBINDING  COMPANY 

NEW  YORK 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTE 

The  human  mind  has  been  the  study  of  my 
life. 

I  have  published  two  volumes  on  Psychology 
generally  ;  one  on  the  Cognitive,  and  the  other 
on  the  Motive  Powers.  I  Lave  issued  a  vol- 
ume of  Metaphysics,  on  First  and  Fundamental 
Truths.  I  have  published  a  volume  of  Lo^ic, 
being  the  Laws  of  Discursive  Thought.  I  now 
present  another  on  Ethics,  or,  Our  Moral  Nat- 
ure. I  have  issued  two  volumes,  one  didactic, 
the  other  historical,  on  Realistic  Philosophy. 

I  have  published  a  work  on  the  Tests  of  Vari- 
ous Sorts  of  Truth,  in  opposition  to  the  prevail- 
ing agnosticism  ;  and  I  have  presented  a  little 
volume  inquiring  whether  the  prevailing  philos- 
ophies can  give  us  Reality  logically.  This  work, 
if  carried  out  consistently,  will  undermine  the 
current  ideal  philosophy  by  giving  Reality  its 


IV  INTRODUCTORY    NOTE 

proper  place.  I  should  like  to  write  a  brief 
treatise  on  ^Esthetics.  But  I  have  already 
treated,  so  far,  of  this  subject  in  the  Motive 
Powers,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  advancing  age 
will  admit  of  my  doiug  more. 

Princeton,  May,  1892. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


PART  FIRST 

FUNDAMENTAL    PRINCIPLES 

SECTION  PAGE 

I.  Aim  of  tiie  Treatise,  ....  1 

II.  Moual  Obligation,        .        .  2 

III.  Conscience 3 

IV.  Moral  Law, 7 

V.  Love, 8 

VI.  TnE  Divine  Existence,         .  .11 

VII.  TnE  Combined  Moual  Principles,      .     13 

VIII.  The  Will, 14 

IX.  Evangelical  Ethics,      .        .        .         .1") 

X.  Six 17 

XI.  Punishment, 17 

XII.  Ethics  Considered  Objectively.         .     1C 


PART   SECOND 

MORAL    IDEAS 

XIII.  Happiness  and  Morality,     .         .         .21 

XIV.  Moral  Excellence,        .        .        .        .22 


VI 


TABLE    OF    CONTENTS 


SECTION 

XV.  Justice, 

XVI.  Rights, 

XVII.  Pkopekty, 

XVIII.  Benevolence  and  Justice,  . 

XIX.    SUMMUM   BONUM, 

XX.  Virtuous  Acts, 

XXI.  Morality  and  our  Natural  Facul- 
ties,      

XXII.  The  Sabbath, 


•AOE 

23 
33 

24 
25 
27 

27 

28 
29 


PART    THIRD 


DUTIES 


XXIII.  Duties  to  God, 

XXIV.  False  Systems, 

XXV.  Duties  to  our  Fellow 
XXVI.  To  the  CnuRCiiES, . 
XXVII.  The  State, 
XXVIII.  War, 
XXIX.  Duties  to  O.urselves, 


31 

36 
37 
45 
46 
48 
49 


OUR   MORAL  NATURE 

PART  FIRST 

FUNDAMENTAL   PRINCIPLES 

Sect.  I.  Aim  of  the  Treatise. — In  ray  earlier 
volumes  I  have  fully  exposed  the  nature  of  our 
Intellect,  of  our  Feelings,  and  of  our  Will.  But 
no  one  of  these,  nor  can  the  whole,  give  to  man 
his  morality  and  his  moral  ideas.  In  this  trea- 
tise I  am  to  show  that  man  is  a  moral  agent,  and 
expound  his  moral  ideas  and  powers. 

It  is  one  of  the  shortest  of  the  common  trea- 
tises on  Ethics  or  Moral  Philosophy.  This  be- 
cause the  collateral  topics  usually  discussed  in 
ethical  works  are  treated  of  in  my  other  philo- 
sophic works.  I  can  refer  those  who  wish  for  a 
fuller  exposition  of  kindred  mental  subjects  to 
my  two  volumes  on  Psychology. 

I  may  mention  that  in  these  works  I  show 
that  man  is  a  personal  being.  I  therefore  as- 
sume the  doctrine  and  use  it  in  this  work. 


2  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

Sect.  II.  Moral  Obligation.  —  Wo  are  all 
familiar  with  Moral  Obligation  in  this  our 
crowded  world. 

There  are  acts  which  are  obligatory  physi- 
cally, such  as  partaking  of  food  and  taking  exer- 
cise, in  order  to  preserve  our  health.  These  acts 
we  are  required  to  attend  to  by  the  necessities 
of  our  nature. 

There  are  other  acts  which  are  felt  to  be  ob- 
ligatory, but  which  we  are  not  required  to  do  by 
any  external  force  :  to  keep  our  promise,  to 
pay  our  debts,  to  hold  by  our  contracts.  There 
may  be  no  external  power  constraining  such 
acts.  We  are  prompted  to  them  by  internal 
motives  which  show  that  there  is  will  in  them  ; 
we  feel  that  we  ought  to  perform  them.  A  bur- 
den is  laid  upon  us  which  we  are  not  at  liberty 
to  decline.  We  feel  reproach  when  we  contra- 
vene the  act,  or  when  we  neglect  it. 

Now  this  second  class  of  obligatory  acts  we 
call  moral,  and  the  violation  we  call  immoral. 
It  is  our  business  in  this  little  work  to  inquire 
into  their  nature  and  expose  them  to  view.  To 
use  a  common  statement,  ethics  has  to  do  not 
with  what  is,  but  what  ought  to  be  ;  not  with 
quid  est,  but  with  quid  oportet. 


OUr.    MORAL   NATURE  6 

Sect.  LTL  Conscience.  —  I  am  not  sure 
whether  I  should  not  have  begun  with  Con- 
science rather  than  Obligation.  It  is  to  the 
Conscience  we  owe  the  Obligation.  We  first 
feel  the  obligation,  and  then  refer  it  to  our  mo- 
ral nature,  and  specially  to  the  conscience. 

I  am  not  here  to  trace  the  full  nature  of  con- 
science. This  I  have  done  elsewhere  in  "  Psy- 
chology, the  Motive  Powers ;"  I  am  simply  to  look 
upon  it  in  certain  aspects.  We  must  look  upon 
it  as  implying  that  certain  acts  are  obligatory. 

But  specially  I  am  to  look  upon  it  as  cogni- 
tive. It  discerns  the  good  and  the  evil ;  it  ac- 
cepts the  one  and  it  rejects  the  other. 

Some  speak  and  write  as  if  the  conscience 
were  an  arbitrary,  or  at  best  merely  a  positive 
power  enjoined  by  Him  who  planted  it  in  our  con- 
stitution. But  conscience  is  a  cognitive  power  ; 
it  discerns  the  good  and  the  evil  in  the  act,  say 
benevolence  or  malevolence,  just  as  the  eye  per- 
ceives color,  say  red  or  blue,  in  that  flower,  or  as 
the  muscular  senses  feel  resistance  in  that  stone 
which  we  hold  in  the  hand.  The  good  and  the 
bad  are  in  the  acts,  and  are  perceived  by  what 
has  been  expressively  called  the  Moral  Sense. 

It  is  to  be  carefuilv  noticed  that  it  is  not  the 


4  OUR   MORAL    NATURE 

decision  of  conscience  that  makes  an  action 
good  or  bad.  It  is  good  or  evil  in  itself,  and  its 
character  is  discovered  by  the  moral  power 
which  approves  or  disapproves  accordingly.  It 
perceives  benevolence  to  be  good,  it  perceives 
cruelty  to  be  bad  ;  and  perceives  both  to  be  so 
in  their  very  nature,  just  as  we  perceive  lead  to 
be  heavy  and  feathers  to  be  light. 

It  is  a  curious  circumstance  that  the  word  for 
conscience  is  not  found  in  ancient  Hebrew  nor 
in  Greek  till  after  the  time  of  Aristotle.  The 
word  in  Greek  is  o-wci^cns,  and  in  Latin  is  con- 
scientia;  both  signifying  joint  knowledge  and 
action,  that  is,  a  knowledge  of  the  act  with  its 
moral  character.  The  phrase  is  used  in  the 
Greek  Testament  on  various  occasions,  in  all 
cases  appropriately  and  expressively.  There  is 
the  answer  of  a  good  conscience  toward  God 
(1  Pet.  iii.  21).  This  supports  us  when  we  are 
falsely  accused.  There  are  persons  of  whom  it 
might  be  said  that  their  mind  and  conscience, 
that  is,  that  their  understanding  and  moral  per- 
ceptions, are  defiled  (Titus  i.  15).  We  meet  at 
times  with  people  in  whom,  as  the  residt  of  a 
long  course  of  wickedness,  their  consciences  are 
"  seared  as  with  a  hot  iron  "  (1  Tim.  iv.  2).     In 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  5 

such,  indeed  in  all  cases,  we  need  to  have  our 
"hearts  sprinkled  from  an  evil  conscience" 
(Heb.  x.  22).  This  seems  to  be  the  accurate 
account  psychologically,  according  to  our  ob- 
servation and  experience.  The  conscience,  when- 
ever it  acts,  does  so  with  authority,  making  man 
a  moral  agent.  Though  the  conscience  was  not 
separated  from  other  powers,  or  named  till  a 
hundred  years  or  so  before  Christ,  yet  all  along 
the  soul  undivided  is  spoken  of  as  condemning 
the  evil  and  approving  the  good. 

There  has  been  much  discussion  as  to 
whether  the  conscience  can  be  perverted,  or 
whether  it  can  be  corrupted.  It  seems  to  some 
that  conscience  is  a  divine  power  planted  in  the 
mind  by  God,  at  once  perfect,  and  never  to  be 
led  astray  or  deteriorated.  But,  on  the  other 
hand,  it  does  look  as  if  the  conscience,  like  every 
other  faculty  in  our  nature,  may  be  led  astray. 
It  may  become  dull  and  obtuse,  as,  for  instance, 
in  heathen  countries,  where  it  may  be  satisfied 
with  irrational  creeds  and  unworthy  ceremonies. 
It  is  notorious  that  the  conscience  is  apt  to  fall 
into  a  slumberous  state,  and  give  little  or  no  no- 
tice of  temptation  assailing  us.  In  some  cases 
it  has  become  so  perverted  that  it  has  declared 


6  OUR    MORAL   NATURE 

evil  to  be  good ;  it  lias  declared  persecution  to 
be  good,  which  it  never  is.  In  other  cases  it  has 
declared  good  to  be  evil,  declared  kindness  to 
enemies  to  be  a  crime.  At  times,  as  among  rob- 
bers, it  has  sanctioned  deeds  that  are  cruel  and 
revengeful.  There  are  cases  in  which  the  con- 
science can  be  made  to  accuse  itself  and  con- 
demn its  own  acts.  It  seems  clear  to  me  that 
there  are  cases  in  which  the  lower  passions  of 
our  nature  are  ever  overmastering  our  moral 
perceptions.  The  Scriptures  are  right  when 
they  speak  of  the  conscience  as  "  denied,"  as  be- 
ing "  seared  as  with  a  hot  iron." 

It  is  clear  that  the  conscience  is  placed  in  the 
very  heart  of  our  nature  for  a  purpose — that  it 
may  be  a  prompter  and  monitor.  Like  the  bee, 
it  has  its  sweets,  but  it  has  also  its  sting. 
When  it  is  obeyed  willingly  there  is  a  glow  of 
satisfaction.  Its  reproaches  may  become  very 
fearful,  disclosing  to  us  the  sins  which  have 
been  committed,  and  the  awful  gulfs  into 
which  we  may  fall.  The  accusations  of  con- 
science may  be  the  acutest  of  all  the  miseries  to 
which  we  are  exposed,  lacerating  us  like  the 
wild  beasts,  or  stinging  like  innumerable  insects. 

It  has  its  rewards.     The  deed  enjoined  having 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  7 

been  done  there  is  a  glow  of  satisfaction.  It 
has  its  penalties.  The  act  enjoined  having  been 
opposed,  or  even  neglected,  we  have  a  regret,  a 
dissatisfaction,  or  a  reproach,  which  disturbs 
and  annoys  us.  In  attending  to  what  is  com- 
manded we  are  conscious  that  we  are  doing 
right,  and  have  more  or  less  anticipation  that 
the  consecpiences  must  be  good.  In  disobeying 
we  have  an  idea  and  a  feeling  more  or  less  dis- 
tinct of  evil  to  come  sooner  or  later. 

The  science  is  made  up  of  the  acts  morally 
sanctioned  or  condemned.  It  has  often  been 
called  Moral  Philosophy  because  it  arranges 
into  a  system  the  acts  approved  or  disapproved. 

Sect.  IV.  Moral  Law. — Morality  is  fitly 
characterized  by  the  phrase  which  Kant  has 
constructed  and  employed,  the  Categorical  Im- 
perative. It  is  categorical  in  that  it  is  definite. 
It  allows  certain  acts.  It  prohibits  others.  But 
it  is  so  designated  chiefly  in  that  it  is  impera- 
tive. It  affirms  of  certain  facts,  not  simply  in 
the  indicative  mood  that  they  are,  or  in  the 
subjunctive  mood  that  they  may  be,  but  in  the 
imperative  mood  that  they  are  to  be  done  or 
that  they  are  not  to  be  done. 


8  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

The  moral  law  is  authoritative.  It  issues 
orders,  it  issues  prohibitions.  It  says  thou 
shalt  love  God  ;  thou  shalt  love  thy  fellow-man. 
It  farther  declares  thou  art  sinning,  that  is, 
transgressing  law  ;  thou  art  not  loving  God, 
thou  art  not  loving  thy  fellow-man  as  thou 
oughtest. 

Our  great  ethical  writer,  Bishop  Butler,  deals 
especially  with  the  authority  of  our  moral  nat- 
ure. He  shows  not  only  that  man  has  a  con- 
science to  discover  the  good  and  the  evil,  but  that 
this  conscience  has  authority,  and  supreme  au- 
thority, that  not  only  does  it  reign,  but  it  reigns 
supreme,  above  every  other  power — above  the 
intelligence,  above  the  feelings. 

Sect.  V.  Love. — Love  is  one  of  the  most  im- 
portant qualities  which  make  an  action  good. 
Sometimes  it  is  a  general  philanthropy  extend- 
ing to  all  persons  and  prompting  us  to  do  them 
good.  More  frequently  it  is  an  affection  to 
families  or  individuals. 

It  may  mingle  with  all  other  affections,  and  in 
doing  so  it  gives  them  a  moral  character.  It  is 
capable  of  making  the  simplest  actions  good, 
even  those  acts  which  we  perform  from  day  to 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  9 

day  and  from  hour  to  hour.  It  has  a  place  in 
ah  the  deeds  that  are  truly  virtuous,  and  im- 
parts a  virtuousness  to  them. 

Having  discovered  God  by  the  evident  traces 
of  design  and  law,  we  at  once  discover  that  we 
stand  in  a  special  relation  to  Him.  He  is  our 
creator,  preserver,  and  ruler  ;  and  we  discover 
that  we  owe  love  and  obedience  to  Him.  I  am 
convinced  that  He  is  the  author,  He  is  cer- 
tainly the  guardian  of  morality.  We  stand  also 
in  a  close  relation  to  our  fellow-men.  We  owe 
them  affection,  and  kind  of  service  according  to 
circumstances. 

Love  may  manifest  itself  in  two  forms. 

TJie  Love  of  Complacency  and  Affection. — We 
delight  in  the  object  or  person  beloved.  It  is 
thus  that  the  mother  clasps  her  infant  to  her 
bosom  ;  thus  that  the  sister  interests  herself  in 
every  movement  of  her  little  brother  ;  thus  that 
the  father,  saying  little  but  feeling  much,  follows 
the  career  of  his  son  in  the  trying  rivalries  of 
the  world  ;  thus  that  throughout  our  lives  our 
hearts,  if  hearts  we  have,  cling  round  the  tried 
friend  of  our  youth  ;  thus  that  the  wife  would 
leave  this  world  with  the  last  look  on  her  hus- 
band ;  thus  that  the  father  woidd  depart  with 


10  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

his  sons  and  daughters  around  his  couch. 
There  is  a  last  look  which  love  remembers — that 
given,  for  instance,  when  the  ship  moves  away 
with  the  dear  friend  in  it,  or  when  the  soul 
leaves  the  earth  to  wing  its  way  to  heaven. 
Love  looks  out  for  the  person  loved.  The 
mother  readily  discovers  her  son  in  that  crowd. 
The  blacksmith 

Hears  his  daughter's  voice 
Singing  in  the  village  choir. 

TJie  Love  of  Benevolence. — In  this  we  not  only 
delight  in  the  contemplation  and  society  of  the 
persons  loved  ;  we  wish  well  to  them,  we  wish 
them  all  that  is  good,  and  so  far  as  in  our  power 
we  do  them  all  that  is  good.  We  will  oblige 
them  if  we  can  ;  we  will  serve  them  if  it  is  in 
our  power  ;  we  will  watch  for  opportunities  of 
promoting  their  welfare  ;  we  will  make  sacrifices 
for  their  welfare.  This  love  is  ready  to  flow 
toward  relatives  and  friends,  toward  neighbors 
and  companions,  toward  all  with  whom  we  come 
in  contact  ;  it  will  go  out  toward  the  whole  fam- 
ily of  mankind.  We  are  ready  to  increase  their 
happiness,  and  in  the  highest  exercises  of  love 


OUE   MOEAL   NATURE  11 

to  raise  them  in  the  scales  of  being  and  to  exalt 
them  morally  and  spiritually. 

The  love  of  God  thus  manifests  itself  in  mul- 
tiplying happiness  or  spreading  holiness.  But 
it  may  be  asked,  How  can  this  benevolence  be 
exhibited  by  us  toward  God,  who  is  independent 
of  us  and  needs  hot  our  aid  ?  The  answer  is,  We 
identify  ourselves  with  Him,  and  strive  to  pro- 
mote His  glory  and  the  causes  in  which  He  is 
interested. 

These  two  forms  of  love  are  not  inconsistent 
with  each  other  ;  they  should  always  be  united. 
Without  the  affection  charity  is  felt  to  be  cold. 
Without  the  benevolence  the  charity  would  be 
felt  to  be  hypocritical.  The  two  joined  give  us 
the  full-orbed  grace — all  light  and  no  shadow. 

Sect.  VI.  The  Dtvtxe  Existence. — Man  is  led 
naturally  to  believe  in  God.  I  do  not  maintain, 
with  Schleiermacher,  that  he  has  a  God-con- 
sciousness or  an  immediate  perception  of  God. 
What  I  hold  is,  that  man  is  induced  by  the  in- 
stance of  adaptation  or  design,  to  which  his  at- 
tention is  ever  called  in  his  own  person  and  in 
all  around  him,  to  believe  in  One  who  is  the  au- 
thor of  it  all.     This  is  the  argument  which  has 


12  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

had  power  on  men  in  all  ages,  and  to  which  Mr. 
John  S.  Mill  advises  us  to  adhere.  We  see  it  in 
the  adaptation  of  one  thing  to  another,  of  the 
bones  to  form  joints  suited  to  the  position 
which  they  occupy  ;  at  the  shoulders  to  give  a 
rotatory  motion,  and  a  direct  motion  backward 
and  forward  in  the  fingers  and  toes.  We  see  it 
in  the  events  of  providence,  encouraging  what  is 
good  and  chastising  what  is  bad. 

There  is  another  argument  telling  powerfully 
on  all,  and  regarded  by  some  as  stronger  than 
any  other.  It  is  what  is  called  the  moral  argu- 
ment. We  find  a  belief  rising  in  us  of  the  ex- 
istence of  God,  and  in  doing  so  we  know  so 
much  of  His  nature.  We  come  to  know  Him  as 
a  moral  God.  We  know  that  morality  is  defec- 
tive when  He  has  not  a  place  in  it,  and  is  the 
very  life  of  it.  When  God  commands,  morality 
is  felt  to  be  infallible  and  unchangeable.  As  these 
principles  act  the  mind  has  a  new  idea  not  em- 
braced in  any  other  science  ;  it  is  that  of  moral 
excellence.  This  claims  to  govern  our  whole 
nature.  It  is  the  subject  specially  discussed  by 
the  great  ethical  writer,  Bishop  Butler.  The 
love  makes  the  whole  process  lovely  and  attrac- 
tive. 


OUR    MORAL    NATURE  13 

Sect.  VII.  The  Combined  Moral  Principles. 
— The  above  seem  the  deeper  principles,  consti- 
tuting indeed  the  very  essence  of  our  moral  nat- 
ure. It  is  the  office  of  Ethics  to  exhibit  them  to 
the  view.  I  am  not  sure  in  what  order  they  come 
or  which  should  be  first  stated.  They  seem  to 
appear  simultaneously.  They  act  and  react  upon 
each  other.  They  act  various  parts  and  serve 
somewhat  different  ends  ;  but  they  combine  in  a 
common  issue  and  constitute  a  unity,  even  as  the 
mind  itself  is  a  Unity.  Morality  is  a  concrete 
mass,  the  different  aspects  of  which  may  be  sepa- 
rately considered,  but  cannot  be  separated  in  fact. 

The  Obligation  prepares  for  the  discovery  of 
moral  acts.  It  is  the  science  of  right  and  obli- 
gation. The  Conscience  actually  reveals  the  acts 
as  good  or  bad.  The  Law  makes  the  acts  impera- 
tive, and  enjoins  the  precepts  and  prohibitions. 
There  is  always  an  appeal  to  God,  and  there  is 
no  appeal  to  a  power  beyond  God.  He  is  seated 
as  on  a  watch-tower,  and  nothing  escapes  his 
notice.  He  looks  down  upon  us  as  Christ 
looked  upon  the  poor  woman  who  threw  her 
mite  into  the  treasury,  being  all  that  she  had. 
Morality  is  ever  felt  to  be  weak  when  it  is  not 
sanctioned  by  God. 

university) 


14  OUR   MORAL    NATURE 

Sect.   VIII.     The  Will.— It  will  be  readily 

allowed  that  all  good  and  all  evil  lie  in  the 
region  of  the  Will.  Now  the  essential  ele- 
ment in  Will  is  choice.  But  Will  must  in- 
clude more  than  the  mere  resolution  to  act. 
It  must  embrace  Wish,  indeed  all  acts  of  se- 
lection or  choice.  It  is  only  when  the  mind 
is  thus  exercised  that  the  act  can  be  called 
ours. 

When  we  wish  or  will  that  which  is  according 
to  law  the  act  can  be  called  moral  ;  when  we 
wish  or  will  that  which  is  contrary  to  the  law, 
the  act  is  immoral. 

Kant  is  ever  speaking  of  Will  as  one  of  the  es- 
sentials of  morality.  He  thus  opens  his  work 
on  "  The  Practical  Reason  :  "  "Nothing  can  pos- 
sibly be  conceived  in  the  world,  or  even  out  of 
the  world,  that  can  be  called  good  without  quali- 
fication, except  a  good  will."  This  is  an  impor- 
tant principle  which  can  and  should  be  defend- 
ed. The  actions  we  perform  in  order  to  their 
being  moral  have  been  chosen  by  the  performer. 
Till  this  is  done  the  act  can  scarcely  be  said  to 
be  ours.  When  the  choice  is  made  the  action 
is  ours,  and  we  may  be  regarded  as  responsible 
for  it. 


OUR    MORAL    NATURE  15 

Sect.  IX.  Evangelical  Ethics.  —  The  prin- 
ciples enumerated  all  proceed  on  the  idea  that 
man  Las  not  violated  them  ;  in  other  words,  that 
man  has  not  sinned.  But,  in  fact,  man  has  not 
done  what  he  ought  to  have  done.  He  has  not 
followed  his  moral  obligations ;  he  has  not 
obeyed  his  conscience  when  it  tells  him  what  is 
right.  He  has  not  followed  that  law  which  is 
his  rule  of  life.  He  has  given  offence  to  God. 
In  other  words,  he  has  not  conformed  to  those 
principles  which  are  in  his  constitution.  Nor 
is  there  in  these  principles  any  means  of  recti- 
fying our  nature. 

But  all  this  does  not  free  man  from  the  obli- 
gations which  are  still  binding  upon  him.  His 
conscience  finds  fault  with  his  neglect ;  the  law 
condemns  him  ;  God  is  angry  with  him.  Still 
these  regvdating  principles  of  our  moral  nature 
are  not  thereby  cancelled  or  even  lowered,  but 
are  as  imperative  as  ever.  The  ethics  that  are 
binding  on  the  perfect  man  are  equally  binding 
on  the  sinful  man.  We  can  draw  a  moral  phi- 
losophy from  man's  fallen  nature  quite  as  readily 
as  from  his  upright  nature. 

What  is  not  made  known  by  natural  ethics  is 
revealed  in  Scripture.  The  way  is  opened  where- 


10  OUlt   MORAL   NATURE 

by  the  sinner  becomes  reconciled  to  God.  Mean- 
while the  dignity  of  morality  and  its  law  are  care- 
fully preserved.  Restoration  is  effected  by  what 
wc  should  have  done  being  done  by  another,  who 
on  the  one  hand  is  connected  with  God,  and  on 
the  other  hand  becomes  man.  Christianity 
comes  in  with  Redemption  and  Grace  :  with  Re- 
demption to  relieve  us  from  the  past,  with  Grace 
to  strengthen  us  for  the  future.  All  the  old 
virtues — Honesty,  Temperance,  Charity,  Love — 
are  as  binding  as  ever.  But  new  ones,  becoming 
our  restored  condition,  are  added  ;  all  implied 
in  the  original  principles  which  we  have  been 
expounding.  Then  there  are  certain  acts  of 
humiliation  becoming  our  position,  such  as  dis- 
trust of  ourselves,  a  sense  of  dependence.  In  par- 
ticular there  is  Repentance,  fully  described  in  the 
Catechism  of  the  "Westminster  divines  as  a  grace 
in  which  the  sinner,  "  out  of  a  true  sense  of  his 
sin  and  apprehension  of  the  mercy  of  God  in 
Christ,  turns  from  it  unto  God  (the  fxeravola  of 
Scripture)  with  full  purpose  of  and  endeavor 
after  new  obedience."  Along  with  this  there  is 
encouragement.  Such  is  Faith,  which  accepts 
of  the  offer  and  is  itself  accepted.  From  this 
emerge  Hope,  Love,  and  Protection  in  the  fut- 


OUH   MORAL   NATURE  17 

ure.  We  have  now  an  Evangelical  service  in 
the  room  of  a  moral  obedience.  Over  all  there 
is  a  clothing  of  Humility. 

Sect.  X.  Sin. — We  live  in  a  world  where  sin 
is  more  common  than  excellence.  Sin  is  the 
neglect,  or,  more  criminal,  the  violation  of  a  law 
which  we  are  bound  to  obey.  That  law  is  re- 
vealed unto  us.  We  know  that  we  ought  to 
obey  it.  We  know  that  we  have  not  obeyed  it, 
and  that  therefore  we  are  sinners.  This  is  the 
condition  of  every  man.  It  is  of  unspeakable 
importance  that  we  should  know  all  this,  but  the 
majority  of  men  do  not  know  it.  The  conse- 
quence is,  on  the  one  hand  they  are  in  a  dull, 
stupid  state  ;  not  contented,  but  not  knowing 
whence  their  discontent  arises ;  or  in  a  distracted 
state,  feeling  their  need  of  peace  and  yet  scarce- 
ly knowing  how  peace  is  to  be  had,  and  they 
look  round  for  it.  Such  is  the  natural  state  of 
man.  The  very  craving  is  an  evidence  of  man 
being  essentially  a  moral  being. 

Sect.  XI.  Punishment. — Our  moral  nature, 
especially  the  Conscience,  which  is  the  expres- 
sion of  our  moral  nature,  determines  that  cer- 
tain acts  are  evil  ;  the  same  moral  nature,  with 


18  OUR  MORAL   NATURE 

its  adjuncts,  especially  the  understanding,  de- 
clares that  certain  acts  should  be  punished. 

The  punishment  has  two  ends  in  view.  One 
is  to  mark  disapprobation  of  the  deeds  ;  the 
other  is  premonitory,  to  prevent  a  recurrence  of 
the  offence.  Both  of  these  are  kept  in  view  by 
God,  and  are  to  be  kept  in  view  by  man  in  the 
exercise  of  his  power. 

In  all  cases  God  is  to  be  regarded  as  the  in- 
flicter  of  punishment.  This  he  accomplishes  in 
this  world  or  in  the  world  to  come.  Every  one 
has  to  appear  before  God  in  judgment,  whether 
he  has  done  good  or  done  evil. 

To  the  civil  magistrate  God  has  given  a  spe- 
cial power,  to  mark  the  crime  and  to  prevent  its 
recurrence.  The  individual  citizen  is  not  to 
take  this  power  on  himself,  but  to  hand  it  over 
to  the  magistrate,  who  has  to  judge  for  himself, 
being  always  responsible  to  God.  There  are 
cases  in  which  the  culprit,  if  allowed  to  live, 
might  endanger  the  lives  of  peaceful  citizens, 
and  in  these  preventive  punishment  should  be 
rigorously  inflicted. 

Sect.  XLT.  Ethics  Considered  Objectively. — 
Hitherto  ethics  have  been  viewed  very  much  un- 


OUR    MORAL   NATURE  19 

der  a  subjective  aspect.  They  are,  in  fact,  very 
much  a  mental  process.  But  they  have  an  objec- 
tive side.  External  facts  correspond  to  the  in- 
ternal facts  and  confirm  them.  One  who  pursues 
an  honest  and  industrious  course  of  life  will 
commonly  be  successful,  by  the  arrangement  of 
Him  who  hath  appointed  all  things.  Outward 
propriety  of  conduct  will  commonly  be  accompa- 
nied with  peace  and  approbation.  The  idle  man 
is  almost  always  liable  to  fail.  The  cunning  and 
deceitful  man  is  apt  to  be  viewed  with  distrust 
and  suspicion.  There  is  thus  a  correspondence 
between  the  internal  feeling,  good  or  bad,  and 
the  external  circumstances.  The  morality  within 
is  sanctioned  by  the  outward  product.  Both 
countenance  that  which  is  good  and  lay  restraints 
on  that  which  is  evil.  They  conspire  to  show 
that  man  is  a  moral  agent,  and  may  contribute 
to  moral  excellence. 


PAET  SECOND 

MORAL    IDEAS 

In  this  Part  I  am  to  give  some  account  of  the 
Ideas  connected  with  our  moral  nature.  I  begin 
with  Happiness  and  its  connection  with  Mo- 
rality. 

I  am  not  to  define  Happiness.  Every  one  who 
has  felt  it  knows  it,  and  no  explanation  can 
make  it  clearer. 

We  are  instinctively  led  to  wish  for  and  pro- 
mote our  own  happiness.  So  we  should  wish 
also  to  further  the  happiness  of  our  fellow-men. 
God  evidently  intends  us  to  do  so. 

God  himself  is  evidently  diffusing  happiness. 
This  is  an  end  kept  in  view  by  Him  in  His 
works.  We  see  it  in  the  easy  and  effective 
power  of  motion  given  to  us  and  to  all  mankind 
in  the  arrangement  of  the  bones  of  our  frame 
and  the  formation  of  the  joints.  There  is  a  like 
adaptation  through  the  whole  organism  of  nat- 
ure.     As   God  does  everywhere,  so  should  we 


OUR   MORAL    NATURE  21 

also  be  promoting  the  felicity  of  all  sensitive 
creatures. 

Sect.  XHL  Happiness  and  Morality. — There 
are  two  kinds  of  Good  which  we  may  seek  :  The 
one  of  these  is  Happiness,  the  other  is  Morality. 

There  is  Happiness.  It  may  come  from  two 
distinct  quarters.  It  may  be  got  from  external 
good,  from  bodily  constitution,  from  health, 
from  wealth  and  raiment,  and  from  the  bless- 
ings of  life,  whatever  these  may  be. 

Provided  we  violate  no  moral  principle,  pro- 
vided we  are  ah  the  while  seeking  for  higher  and 
moral  ends,  there  is  no  impropriety,  but  the  op- 
posite, in  seeking  to  promote  our  comfort  or 
our  higher  felicity.  When  these  blessings  are 
bestowed  upon  us  there  is  ground  for  gratitude 
to  the  Giver,  which  becomes  a  further  source  of 
contentment  and  felicity.  The  daily  benefits 
we  receive  may,  each  of  them  being  simple,  be 
very  small ;  but  being  continued  and  continuous, 
they  become  the  main  source  of  our  happiness 
and  the  attractions  which  bind  us  to  this 
world. 

Both  the  promotion  of  Happiness  and  the 
Morality  are  obligatory. 


22  OUR    MORAL    NATURE 

Sect.  XIV.  Moral  Excellence. — We  are  ex- 
amining our  nature  to  Lear  what  it  says.  It  cer- 
tainly allows  that  happiness  may  be  sought,  and 
enjoins  it  in  various  forms,  say  in  comforts  or  in 
joys.  But  it  as  certainly  says  that  there  is  at  least 
one  other  thing  to  be  sought,  and  that  is  moral 
excellence.  There  are  times  when  these  two 
come  into  collision  ;  when  men  must  either  suffer 
or  sin  ;  must  either  tell  a  lie  or  lose  a  valuable 
property.  Our  moral  nature  decides  that  ques- 
tion at  once,  and  cannot  be  made  give  any  other 
answer  than  the  one.  It  declares  that  we  must 
keep  our  integrity  and  let  everything  else  go. 

There  is  gratitude  for  favors  bestowed  on  us. 
There  are  the  common  civilities  of  life  paid. 
There  is  special  attention  to  those  who  are  in 
need  or  who  have  claims  upon  us.  There  are 
the  special  demands  of  our  home,  of  our  rela- 
tions, of  the  district,  of  our  country.  There  are 
the  claims  which  mankind  have  upon  us,  above 
all  the  duty  of  sending  the  Gospel  to  every 
creature,  of  making  known  the  mercy  of  God  to 
those  who  have  sinned,  and  who  therefore  need 
it.  These  are  ends  which  we  should  set  before 
us  habitually.  In  this  way  we  are  to  fulfil  the 
very  ends  of  our  being. 


OPE   MORAL   NATURE  23 

Sect.  XV.  Justice. — The  definition  of  it  is 
"bis  own  to  every  one,"  suurn  cuique.     We  are 

to  give  every  man  his  rights,  whatever  they  may 
be.  Herbert  Spencer  in  his  volume  on  "  Jus- 
tice" goes  so  far  as  to  include  under  it  even  the 
lower  animals,  who  have  certain  rights  which  we 
are  bound  to  attend  to.  Brutes  are  to  be  treated 
with  forbearance  and  kindness.  It  is  one  of 
the  merits  of  Bentham  and  the  utilitarians  that 
they  have  included  the  lower  animals,  which  de- 
mand justice  of  us. 

But  man  has  higher  claims.  Not  only  has  he, 
like  the  brute  creatures,  a  title  to  justice,  but 
he  is  required  as  an  intelligent  being  to  give 
justice  to  the  lower  animals  and  to  his  fellow- 
man.  This  is  a  peculiarity  of  justice  as  a  virtue 
on  the  part  of  man  that  he  is  bound  to  give 
justice  to  his  fellow-men  and  to  God.  To  God 
himself  justice  belongs  as  an  essential  attribute. 
All  His  creatures  may  expect  from  Him  that 
which  is  light  in  time  and  in  eternity. 

Sect.  XVI. — Eights.  On  looking  on  the  ob- 
jects around  us  we  feel  that  there  are  certain  of 
them  which  we  can  claim  as  ours.  Some,  when 
traced  to  their  source — indeed  all  of  them — are 


24  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

by  the  appointment  of  God.  Such  are  the  light 
and  rains,  ofvwhich  no  one  can  lawfully  deprive 
us.  Some  seem  to  be  ours  by  the  very  nature 
of  things ;  thus  parents  have  to  provide  for 
their  children  and  to  see  them  educated.  Some 
seem  to  be  ours  by  the  customs  of  the  country, 
such  as  the  right  to  decent  burial.  Such  is  our 
property  generally — in  wages  or  in  inheritance, 
in  land  or  money  or  stocks.  We  can  claim 
these.  No  one  has  a  right  to  deprive  us  of 
them.  Under  the  same  head  may  be  placed  all 
that  we  earn  by  bodily  or  mental  exertion,  by 
our  talents  or  our  industry,  and  also  by  our  in- 
genuity and  our  character.  These  are  rights 
which  we  can  claim  for  ourselves,  and  which  we 
are  bound  to  allow  in  others. 

Sect.  XVII.  Property. — Almost  every  one 
has  rights  of  some  description  given  him  by  his 
father  or  mother,  or  earned  by  ability  or  indus- 
try on  his  own  part.  To  these,  when  his  right 
is  established,  he  is  entitled  to  adhere.  No  one 
has  a  right  to  deprive  him  of  this  property.  If 
he  parts  with  any  portion  of  it,  it  is  supposed 
by  some  equivalent  being  granted. 

But  to  this  same   head   belong   some   other 


OUR   MORAL    NATURE  25 

things  which  men  value  ;  there  belong,  in  par- 
ticular, his  character,  his  reputation.  These 
constitute  his  property  ;  they  belong  to  him, 
and  he  may  turn  them  to  whatever  use  he  sees 
lit,  and  earn  by  them  other  property  such  as 
money  or  land  or  higher  reputation.  By  this 
means  society  is  bound  together  by  bonds 
which  impart  confidence  to  the  operations 
which  are  carried  on,  and  tend  to  carry  on  these 
still  farther,  till  society  is  bound  together  in  a 
way  which  cannot  readily  be  broken. 

Sect.  XVILT.  Benevolence  and  Justice. — Both 
are  allowed,  both  are  required,  each  according 
to  what  is  demanded  in  the  circumstances.  All 
men  seek  happiness,  and  God  delights  to  bestow 
it.  But  there  is  another  good  which  we  ought 
to  seek,  and  that  is  moral  excellence. 

There  are  times  when  we  can  have  both. 
There  is  first  health  and  happiness.  There  is 
also  moral  personal  goodness.  It  is  to  be  un- 
derstood that  when  we  can  have  both  without 
any  conflict  we  may  seek  and  obtain  both.  But 
when  there  is  a  contest  and  conflict,  which  is  to 
give  way?  Our  nature  properly  interpreted 
decides  that  question  in  the  name  of  conscience 


26  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

and  of  God.  The  phrases  good  and  right  are 
applied  to  this  high  decision,  the  former  denot- 
ing the  love,  the  latter  more  especially  the  law. 

In  respect  of  the  claims  which  Justice  and 
Beneficence  have  upon  us  there  is  no  difference. 
I  am  bound  to  pay  a  certain  sum  to  this  poor 
man  for  the  work  done  for  me.  Not  only  so, 
but,  as  he  cannot  sustain  himself  and  is  my 
neighbor,  I  am  bound  to  give  him  a  decent  sum 
in  charity. 

For  the  debt  I  owe  him  I  am  required  to  give 
the  man  a  certain  sum.  But  the  obligation  to 
charity  is  not  thus  definite.  I  am  bound  to  give 
in  charity  to  the  poor,  but  how  much — a  dollar 
or  a  pound  or  ten  pounds — this  is  left  to  myself. 
In  this  way  God  would  sift  and  try  us  to  make 
us  manifest  how  much  love  or  charity  there  is 
in  us.  This  difference  is  often  expressed  by 
the  distinction  drawn  between  duties  "of  per- 
fect and  imperfect  obligation."  We  must  care- 
fully distinguish  between  the  two,  between  a 
debt  and  charity,  and  we  must  be  particularly 
careful  not  to  reduce  the  rigid  form  of  the  for- 
mer to  the  looser  form  of  the  less  stringent. 
Both  duties  are  to  be  performed.  In  both  we 
are  responsible  to  God. 


OUH    MORAL    NATURE  27 

Sect.  XIX.  Summum  Bontjm. — The  phrase 
was  used  by  the  ancients.  It  can  be  understood 
by  us.     It  denotes  the  highest  excellence. 

I  am  not  sure  that  it  should  be  applied  to 
mere  happiness,  even  the  highest  and  the  purest. 
It  would  be  more  appropriately  employed  in 
speaking  of  the  highest  moral  excellence.  It 
may  be  most  appropriately  used  when  it  leads 
to  and  is  accompanied  with  the  purest  happi- 
ness. This  is  a  bonum  which  all  may  seek  to 
attain,  and  it  is  the  summum  bonum. 

Sect.  XX.  Virtuous  Acts. — As  the  result  of 
these  various  discussions  we  should  be  able  to 
determine  what  is  the  nature  of  virtue  or  moral 
excellence.  Certainly  Love  is  an  element  in  it. 
It  may  not  be  there  consciously  ;  but  it  is  there 
in  action.  This  is  not  all :  there  is  also  Law. 
The  two  combined  give  us  virtuous  action.  Both 
are  voluntary,  though  the  voluntary  action  may 
be  very  much  unobserved. 

In  ordinary  cases  there  is  no  analysis  by  us 
of  the  elements.  The  whole  is  one  noble  im- 
pulse. The  law  presents  us  with  the  form,  the 
love  gives  the  wings.  This  is  always,  or  almost 
always,  accompanied  by  feeling.      This  diffuses 


28  017 II   MORAL   NATURE 

the  sentiment  throughout  the  soul  and  finds 
exit  in  lively  affection. 

The  good  man  exercises  love  habitually. 
Under  this  becoming  temper  it  becomes  a  habit 
or  second  nature  to  him.  Were  the  great  body 
of  mankind  under  these  guiding  motives,  the 
world  would  show  an  entirely  different  aspect. 
The  various  powers  of  the  mind — sensitive,  in- 
tellectual, and  emotive — would  come  under  one 
high  motive.  Corresponding  actions  would 
come  forth  to  confirm  the  character  and  flow 
forth  in  beneficent  acts. 

Sect.  XXI.  Morality  and  Our  Natural  Fac- 
ulties.— There  are  some  who  would  explain  all 
morality  by  the  use  of  the  ordinary  faculties  of 
the  mind.  According  to  a  very  general  opinion, 
morality  is  supposed  to  consist  of  feelings  only. 
This  is  so  far  a  mistake.  The  exercise  of  our 
native  powers  is  not  in  itself  either  virtuous  or 
vicious  any  more  than  is  the  growth  of  the  plant 
and  animal.  There  is  no  morality  in  the  senses, 
in  the  understanding  or  in  the  feelings,  consid- 
ered in  themselves,  though  they  all  may  be  made 
moral  or  immoral  according  to  the  use  made  of 
them, 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  29 

The  senses  have  no  morality  directly,  though 
they  should  be  made  to  serve  what  is  good.  It 
is  the  office  of  the  understanding  to  determine 
the  precise  nature  of  the  acts.  It  will  always 
be  held  that  there  is  something  defective  in  mo- 
rality when  no  feeling  is  excited.  But  it  is  by 
a  special  moral  power,  by  the  power  which  dis- 
cerns the  good  and  the  evil,  that  morality  is 
discerned.  "When  thus  sanctioned  the  under- 
standing and  the  feelings  come  in  to  aid  the 
conscience  and  to  render  the  moral  ideas  more 
clear  and  lively. 

Sect.  XXII.  The  Sabbath. — Most  of  the  duties 
we  have  to  perform  are  imposed  upon  us  by  our 
moral  nature,  as,  for  example,  to  speak  the  truth 
and  be  honest  in  all  our  transactions.  But  some 
are  enjoined  positively  by  God.  Of  this  charac- 
ter is  the  weekly  Sabbath.  It  was  not  instituted, 
as  some  suppose,  at  Mount  Sinai  on  the  occasion 
of  the  departure  of  the  children  of  Israel  from 
Egypt,  but  at  the  creation  of  the  world,  as  a 
day  of  rest  to  commemorate  God's  resting  from 
His  work  of  creation.  It  is  probable  that  in 
Egypt  the  Israelites  had  some  difficulty  in  keep- 
ing the  Sabbath  owing  to  the  severity  of  their 


30  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

oppressors.  On  coming  to  Sinai  they  are  com- 
manded to  remember  the  Sabbath  day  as  having 
been  previously  appointed.  The  Sabbath  at 
Sinai  had  some  peculiar  restrictions  suited  to 
the  dispensation,  but  not  binding  on  us.  After 
the  resurrection  of  our  Lord,  the  first  day  of 
the  week,  instead  of  the  seventh,  was  kept  as 
the  Sabbath,  in  commemoration  of  His  resurrec- 
tion from  the  dead.  This  day  has  been  kept 
ever  since  as  a  day  of  rest  and  of  spiritual 
improvement.  It  is  found  that  even  the  lower 
animals  require  it ;  horses,  for  instance,  are  apt 
to  break  down  prematurely  if  made  to  draw 
heavy  loads  all  days  of  the  week.  It  has  been 
an  unspeakable  privilege  both  to  men's  bodies 
and  souls.  All  men  and  women  require  it  to 
save  them  from  incessant  toil,  and  from  the 
sinking  down  of  both  body  and  si^irit.  The  ob- 
servance of  the  Sabbath  has  thus  become  a  moral 
and  not  a  mere  positive  injunction.  The  Sabbath 
has  been  a  great  blessing  to  individuals,  as  giv- 
ing them  a  time  of  rest  from  toil,  and  for  higher 
exercises,  and  preparation  for  a  better  country, 
and  to  the  community  generally  as  giving  lei- 
sure and  motive  for  reflection  and  devotedness 
to  God. 


PAET  THIED. 

DUTIES. 

Sect.  XXIII.  Duties  to  Gob. — From  the 
above  Principles  and  Ideas  certain  practical  acts 
are  derived.  These  are  Duties — something  due, 
something  to  be  paid. 

These  are  so  numerous  that  we  must  arrange 
them  under  heads,  so  as  to  be  able  to  remember 
and  employ  them.  Upon  the  whole  the  old  and 
scriptural  classification  is  the  most  intelligible 
and  convenient.  We  are  to  live  soberly,  right- 
eously, and  godly.  This  would  give  us  the 
division,  only  reversing  the  order,  into  the  duties 
we  owe  to  God,  the  duties  ice  owe  to  our  fellow- 
men,  into  the  duties  ive  owe  to  ourselves. 

It  may  be  difficult  at  times  to  carry  out  this 
division.  Some  of  the  duties  of  life  might  be 
put  in  more  than  one  of  the  classes.  In  a  sense 
all  of  them  might  be  regarded  as  duties  we  owe 
God,  who  is  supreme.  This  truth  should  always 
be  carried  with  vis,  to  induce  us  to  do  all  our 


UNIVERSITY 


32  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

actions  to  God  and  thus  sanctify  them.  But 
there  are  duties  which  we  owe  specially  to  our 
fellow-men,  and  duties  we  owe  to  ourselves. 
Some  of  the  duties  we  owe  to  ourselves  we  owe 
also  to  our  neighbors,  such  as  charity.  In  such 
cases  all  we  have  to  do  is  to  make  a  statement  to 
this  effect,  say  by  placing  the  duty  under  two  or 
more  heads. 

Beginning  with  our  duties  to  God,  Chalmers 
goes  so  far  as  to  speak  ("  Natural  Theol.,"  p.  56) 
of  the  duties  laid  upon  us  by  the  probability  or 
even  the  imagination  of  a  Qod.  In  our  breasts, 
moving  knowingly  or  unconsciously,  there  are 
prognostications  of  a  superior  power  which 
prompt  us  to  seek  further  till  we  discover  the 
clear  evidence  of  the  existence  of  God  and  of  His 
holy  and  righteous  character.  These  prognosti- 
cations we  should  not  seek  to  repress,  but  rather 
f oUow  them  till  they  lead  us  to  a  satisfactory  re- 
sult, till  they  show  us  clearly  the  evidence  of 
design  and  the  proof  of  the  existence  of  a  Su- 
preme Being  of  intelligence  and  wisdom,  of 
purity  and  love.  It  is  one  of  the  highest  offices 
of  the  imagination  that  it  is  ever  prompting  us 
to  this,  if  we  do  not  resist  but  rather  follow  it 
as  a  grand  impulse. 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  33 

As  we  contemplate  the  character  of  God  as 
seen  in  His  works,  we  feel  that  we  ought  to 
cherish  toward  Him  at  all  times  a  reverent  and 
devout  feeling.  This  we  owe  to  Him  from  His 
holy  character  and  the  relation  in  which  we 
stand  to  Him,  in  whom  we  live  and  move  and 
have  our  being.  We  owe  this  to  Him  from  our 
weakness  and  our  dependence  upon  him.  In 
particular  we  owe  Him  worship.  I  do  not  know 
whether  the  precise  form  of  worship  is  in  all 
cases  prescribed.  We  must  take  care  to  have  it 
simple  ;  and  we  must  secure  that  its  splendor 
does  not  suppress  its  sincerity.  An  essential 
part  of  it  is  Praise,  in  which  we  exalt  the  Divine 
Being,  and  in  doing  so  the  feelings  of  admiration 
and  love  are  called  forth  in  our  own  breasts. 

Another  essential  part  is  Prayer.  "  Prayer  is 
the  offering  of  our  desires  unto  God  for  things 
agreeable  to  His  will,  with  confession  of  our  sins 
and  thankful  acknowledgment  of  His  mercy" 
(Question  of  "  Shorter  Catechism  "  of  Westmin- 
ster Divines).  Believing  in  the  existence  of  God, 
and  knowing  His  character,  it  is  clearly  our  duty 
to  pay  Him  some  acknowledgment.  We  have  to 
thank  Him  for  His  constant  kindness  and  His 
precious   gifts.     We  have  to  acknowledge   our 


34  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

inany  sins  of  heart,  of  speech,  and  behavior.  All 
this  implies  a  regular  appeal  and  a  perpetual 
communion  with  God.  As  it  is  due  to  Him  so 
it  is  good  for  us  thus  to  unbosom  ourselves  to 
Him.  At  times  we  may  be  obliged  to  make  our 
prayers  secret,  without  the  use  of  words.  But 
in  all  cases  where  it  can  be  done  we  should  use 
words  in  our  petitions,  as  this  makes  our  prayers 
definite  and  expressive. 

Natural  religion  does  not  say  from  what  quar- 
ters our  public  prayers  are  to  be  taken,  from  a 
prepared  book  of  devotion  or  from  extempora- 
neous expression.  The  former  method  is  more 
apt  to  be  precise  and  systematic,  the  latter  to 
give  a  more  free  expression  to  the  outpouring 
of  the  heart.  A  judicious  combination  of  the 
two  methods  may  often  be  the  more  expedient. 
In  all  cases  formality  is  to  be  carefully  avoided. 
Care  must  be  taken  to  have  public  prayers  ex- 
press the  wants  of  those  who  pray. 

Oaths  are  certainly  allowed  in  Scripture.  But 
they  are  to  be  resorted  to  only  on  solemn  occa- 
sions. In  an  oath  we  call  God  to  witness  that 
we  speak  the  truth,  or  that  we  will  perform  what 
we  promise.  This  gives  greater  security  than 
an  ordinary  declaration,  and  is  at  times  a  means 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  35 

of  gaining  confidence.  We  can  get  no  stronger 
assurance  from  man  than  this  appeal  to  God. 

God  Las  evidently  causes  in  this  world  in  which 
He  is  deeply  interested.  "We  are  to  seek  out 
these,  inquire  what  they  imply,  and  carry  them 
on  as  far  as  may  be  in  our  power.  There  are 
missions  of  various  sorts.  There  is  the  convic- 
tion and  conversion  of  sinners,  and  the  prosper- 
ity of  the  church  and  its  several  branches. 
There  is  the  suppression  of  vice,  there  is  the 
propagation  of  morality  throughout  the  world, 
or  in  some  particular  district  in  which  we  feel 
an  interest.  There  is  the  cause  of  missions, 
domestic  and  foreign.  There  are  causes  which 
God  favors  and  which  He  expects  us  to  favor  by 
giving  our  personal  services  or  our  money 
to  their  support.  We  are  thus  to  labor  till 
we  secure  for  God  the  highest  place  in  His 
own  world  and  over  all  that  world. 

In  general  we  are  at  once  to  obey  whenever  He 
has  uttered  a  command,  whatever  be  the  sac- 
rifice which  we  are  required  to  make.  The  an- 
nouncement may  be  made  by  the  conscience 
as  the  vicegerent  of  God  ;  or  it  may  be  a  com- 
mand of  Scripture.  It  may  be  an  order  to  sell 
all  that  we  have,  and  give  to  the   poor,  or  to 


30  OTTE   MORAL   NATUEE 

promote  sorae  good  cause.  All  that  we  have 
to  assure  ourselves  of  is  that  it  is  the  will  of 
God,  and  then  obedience  should  instantly  fol- 
low. 

It  is  utterly  inconceivable  that  God,  who  is 
above  all,  and  is  of  a  perfectly  holy  character, 
should  require  of  us  what  is  injurious  to  our 
best  interests.  He  may  require  of  us  what  are 
great  sacrifices  at  the  time,  but  which  in  the 
end  will  have  greatly  overbalancing  recom- 
penses. 

Sect.  XXIV.  False  Systems. — The  Scriptures 
everywhere  condemn  false  religious  systems 
which  existed  in  their  day,  such  as  the  worship 
of  false  gods.  We  are  to  do  the  same  in  regard 
to  errors  which  prevail  in  our  times. 

Materialism. — It  is  depriving  us  and  it  is  de- 
priving God  of  one  of  the  most  essential  of  his 
perfections.  It  makes  us  and  it  makes  Him  a 
mass  of  matter  of  which  we  have  no  proof  that  it 
can  think,  that  it  can  judge  or  reason,  or  that  it 
can  discover  the  relation  of  means  and  end. 
We  perceive  God  everywhere  performing  acts 
which  show  that  he  is  a  spirit. 

Pantheism   is   depriving   God  of   one  of   his 


OLTR   MORAL   NATURE  37 

highest  perfections,  of  his  personality.  We 
possess  this  power,  and  should  value  it  highly. 
We  have  received  it  from  God,  and  must  believe 
that  He  himself  possesses  it. 

Utiiitarianism. — It  makes  us  look  merely  to 
happiness.  It  says  that  the  highest  duty  is  to 
provide  for  the  greatest  happiness  of  the  greatest 
number.  But  the  affairs  of  this  world  are  so 
complicated  that  it  is  often  difficult,  at  times 
impossible,  to  tell  whether  any  given  act  is  fitted 
to  promote  this  end.  What  is  meant  to  do  so 
may  turn  out  the  very  opposite,  it  may  bring 
with  it  misery  and  not  felicity. 

Sect.  XXV.  Duties  to  our  Fellow-men. — 
We  are  to  have  a  respect  toward  man  as  man. 
We  are  to  honor  all  men.  We  are  specially  to 
have  a  sympathy  with  them  in  joy  and  sorrow. 
We  are  to  rejoice  with  them  that  rejoice,  and 
weep  with  them  that  weep. 

We  are  to  love  our  neighbors  as  we  love  our- 
selves. What  is  the  meaning  of  this  ?  We  have 
in  our  natures  an  instinctive  love  toward  our- 
selves. This  is  appointed,  and  may  be  appealed 
to  as  the  standard  of  love  which  we  should 
cherish  toward  others. 


38  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

This  affection,  when  cherished,  lifts  us  above 
Selfishness,  into  which  we  are  so  apt  to  fall, 
above  Resentment,  above  Murmuring  at  the  suc- 
cess of  others,  above  Envy,  above  Scandal,  above 
Spitefulness.  We  would  not  do  any  of  these  to 
ourselves,  and  duty  requires  that  we  do  not  any 
of  them  toward  others.  "  We  are  to  do  unto 
others  as  we  would  that  they  should  do  unto 
us."  Cherishing  love  toward  all,  we  are  to  be 
looking  out  and  waiting  for  opportunities  of  do- 
ing them  good. 

Cherishing  these  affections  I  think  it  is  al- 
lowable to  have  differences  in  rank  in  the  wealth 
possessed.  This  allows  of  a  stimulus  to  people 
to  rise  in  the  world.  It  tends  also  to  produce  a 
higher  style  of  manners  among  the  upper  classes, 
which  stimulates  the  lower  classes  to  seek  to 
reach  a  like  elevation.  We  must  be  careful  not 
to  carry  these  distinctions  too  far,  lest  we  op- 
press the  poorer  classes.  If  I  do  not  mistake 
the  signs  of  the  times,  one  of  the  burning  ques- 
tions in  the  social  contest  will  be  the  inequali- 
ties of  station. 

We  begin  with  Integrity.  It  is  of  importance 
that  the  young  should  start  with  a  thorough 
spirit  of  uprightness.     Without  this  the  conduct 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  39 

will  be  crooked  and  untrustworthy,  and  a  spirit 
of  suspicion  and  discontent  will  be  gendered. 
The  character  of  the  man  will  suffer  greatly  by 
losing  openness  and  frankness,  and  will  go  on 
to  further  excesses  of  the  same  kind,  employing 
one  deception  to  conceal  another.  The  result  is 
that  suspicion  will  prevail  throughout  the  com- 
munity. Calumny  of  every  kind  is  to  be  avoid- 
ed, and  a  charitable  rather  than  a  harsh  spirit 
is  to  be  cherished,  and  it  will  come  out  in  the 
habitual  expression  to  others. 

Veracity. — It  is  of  vast  moment,  both  to  the 
individual  and  the  community,  that  there 
should  be  a  spirit  of  truthfulness  prevalent. 
Without  this  we  would  not  know  what  to  be- 
lieve and  what  not  to  believe,  and  a  universal 
suspicious  temper  would  be  engendered.  Chil- 
dren are  to  be  specially  trained  to  sincerity  and 
truth-speaking  in  all  circumstances.  When  this 
spirit  is  abroad  it  gives  a  wholesome  breath  to 
society  and  sweetens  the  intercourse  which  hu- 
man beings  have  with  one  another.  Various 
good  ends  may  be  accomplished  which  cannot 
be  gained  when  there  is  a  general  spirit  of  jeal- 
ousy and  suspicion. 

Writers  on  ethics  may  be  disturbed  by  very 


40  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

perplexing  questions  as  to  how  we  should  speak 
to  imbeciles  and  to  lunatics.  It  is  agreed  on 
all  hands  that  we  are  not  required  to  speak 
the  whole  truth  to  them.  The  question  arises 
whether  we  are  ever  at  liberty  to  say  to  them 
what  is  not  true.  I  reply  that  this  is  to  be 
done  as  seldom  as  possible.  The  cases  may 
be  made  very  rare  in  which  we  speak  what  is 
not  consistent  with  fact  to  a  lunatic.  When  we 
do  so  speak  we  do  it  as  unto  a  wall  or  a  tree, 
believing  that  the  persons  spoken  to  are  not 
intelligent  or  responsible.  In  most  cases  it  is 
best  to  tell  the  truth,  believing  that  the  conse- 
quences will  not  be  evil. 

Property. — God  has  bestowed  upon  us  certain 
powers  and  gifts  which  no  one  is  at  liberty  to 
take  from  us  or  to  interfere  with.  All  attempts 
to  deprive  us  of  them  is  theft.  Under  the  same 
head  may  be  placed  all  purposes  to  deprive  us 
of  the  right  to  earn  property  or  to  use  it  as  we 
see  fit.  Honesty  has  ever  been  esteemed  by  peo- 
ple generally  as  one  of  the  greatest  of  all  virtues. 
The  laws  protecting  it  have  been  one  of  the 
greatest  boons  that  can  be  conferred  on  man. 

Under  the  same  head  may  be  placed  our  char- 
acter and  influence.     They  are  property,  and  we 


OUR   MORAL    NATURE  41 

Lave  a  right  to  retain  tliem  and  make  a  good  use 
of  them  for  our  own  good  and  that  of  others. 

TJie  Duties  of  Communities. — Mankind  are  re- 
quired by  their  position  to  form  themselves  into 
communities,  such  as  nations,  towns,  commer- 
cial companies,  and  clubs  of  various  sorts.  But 
no  such  association  should  be  formed  or  joined 
where  there  is  any  illegal  act  to  be  done.  On 
the  supposition  that  all  the  requirements  are 
lawful,  there  should  be  a  rigid  performance  of 
duties  to  the  members  of  the  society  and  others 
with  whom  they  stand  in  relation.  There  has 
been  in  America  of  late  years  a  jealousy  of  trusts, 
which  should  always  be  carefully  watched. 

The  moral  law  is  binding  on  communities,  as 
it  is  upon  single  persons.  It  is  a  fact  that  thero 
are  persons  who  commit,  as  members  of  a  so- 
ciety, unjust  deeds  which  they  would  shrink 
from  as  private  persons. 

Esprit  de  corps,  which  serves  some  good  pur- 
poses, may  often  be  encouraged  in  the  spirit 
which  pervades  a  body  of  soldiers  or  a  class  of 
students ;  but  it  must  not  be  carried  so  far  in 
any  case  as  thereby  to  injure  individuals. 

Master*  and  Servants. — Servants  have  to  give 
such  service  as  was  understood  at  their  engage- 


42  OUR  MORAL   NATURE 

ment — this  to  be  determined  by  custom  or  the 
law  of  tho  country.  Masters  and  mistresses 
should  have  respect  both  to  the  best  interests 
and  feelings  of  their  dependents.  We  all  know 
how  masters,  and  especially  mistresses,  are  apt 
to  complain  of  their  servants.  But  the  fault 
may  lie  in  the  caprice  of  those  who  are  in  au- 
thority. They  should  realize  that  the  poor  and 
dependent  have  also  rights  which  are  to  be 
rigidly  attended  to.  They  should  have  liberty 
of  thought  and  of  religious  worship.  The  good 
master  or  mistress  commonly  gets  in  the  end  good 
servants,  who,  as  a  rule,  are  apt  to  remain  with 
those  who  are  considerate  and  hind  to  them. 

The  Family. — Mankind  are  bound  to  form 
themselves  into  families  for  the  good  of  the 
race,  for  its  felicity,  and  for  its  welfare.  There 
are  duties  binding  on  both  father  and  mother. 
Both  have  to  take  care  of  the  young,  to  see  that 
their  wants  are  supplied  for  the  present,  and 
that  they  are  trained  to  a  useful  occupation  for 
their  future  lives.  Every  one,  even  the  rich, 
shoidd  have  some  work  to  do.  It  was  a  good 
custom  of  the  ancient  Jews  that  every  one  should 
have  an  employment  ;  we  find  that  the  Apostle 
Paul,  though  of  a  good  family,  was  a  tent-maker. 


OUR   MORAL    NATURE  43 

There  are  duties  devolving  on  children.  They 
have  to  show  affection  to  parents  ;  they  have 
to  give  obedience  to  them,  except  in  cases 
where  their  commands  are  seen  to  be  clearly 
contrary  to  the  higher  demands  of  God. 

Brothers  and  sisters  clearly  owe  affection  and 
a  degree  of  kindness  to  one  another,  and  should 
be  showing  this  perpetually.  This  interest 
should  extend  to  more  distant  relationship,  as 
far  indeed  as  affection  may  be  extended,  or  as 
far  as  special  love  is  not  lost  in  a  general  phi- 
lanthropy. 

The  Sexual  Relationships. — These  are  meant 
to  add  to  our  comforts,  and  are  necessary  for 
the  continuation  of  the  race.  But  they  are  apt 
to  run  into  perilous  excess,  and  need  to  be 
carefully  guarded  and  limited.  This  is  specially 
required  in  order  to  the  upbringing  of  children, 
having  a  respect  both  to  their  bodily  welfare 
and  also  to  their  training  and  character.  The 
special  restraint  on  the  evils  is  maiTiage,  which 
ought  to  be  carefully  guarded  by  law.  "  Mar- 
riage," says  Dr.  Dorner,  "is  the  union  of  two 
persons  of  opposite  sexes  in  the  most  intimate 
fellowship  of  body  and  soul — a  fellowship  in 
which  each  personality  has  its  deficiencies  sup- 


44  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

plied  and  both  together  form  a  higher  unity." 
It  is  essentially  monogamous  and  indissoluble, 
and  only  as  such  can  it  be  morally  contracted. 
"  The  positive  condition  is  that  there  should  be 
free  choice  and  inward  inclination,  that  is,  that 
the  two  persons  be  ready  to  give  themselves  un- 
reservedly to  each  other."  There  shoidd  only  be 
one  wife  or  one  husband,  that  there  may  not  be 
jealousies  and  quarrels,  not  a  divided  but  one 
affection. 

Divorces  are  becoming  shamefully  prevalent 
in  various  countries.  They  can  be  allowed 
morally  only  from  causes  which  virtually  abro- 
gate the  relationship  :  by  unfaithfulness  to  the 
marriage  tie  or  by  wilful  and  proven  aban- 
donment. They  should  not  be  allowed  from 
any  other  cause.  If  they  take  place  otherwise, 
the  parties  should  be  punished. 

Law  and  special  marks  of  disgrace  must  be 
applied  to  adultery,  to  incest,  to  self -pollution, 
and  unnatural  crimes,  as  corrupting  the  individ- 
ual and  introducing  immeasurable  disorder  and 
misery  into  the  household. 

Our  Irascible  Affections. — Our  Maker  has  en- 
dowed us  with  such  affections  which  commonly 
show  themselves   in  some   form   of  temper,  as 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  45 

quick  or  violent  or  sulky.  They  serve  some 
good  purposes.  They  may  preserve  us  from 
insults  or  ill-usage  of  various  sorts ;  may  act 
like  the  prickles  which  grow  on  certain  kinds 
of  plants  and  keep  them  from  being  meddled 
with.  But  they  are  to  be  carefully  watched 
and  guarded.  In  all  cases  revenge  is  to  be 
avoided.  Vengeance  is  not  a  prerogative  of 
man,  who  would  most  certainly  abuse  it.  "  Ven- 
geance is  mine,"  saith  the  Lord.  He  retains  it 
in  his  own  hand,  because  he  alone  is  able  to  esti- 
mate the  offences.  A  prevailing  love  is  to  be 
ready  to  keep  all  irritations  within  proper 
bounds. 

Gaming. — It  is  dangerous  to  all.  It  is  about 
the  worst  habit  which  the  young  man  can  form. 
Through  its  gains  and  losses  it  perturbs  the  mind 
at  the  time,  and  it  is  apt  to  lead  to  excesses. 
Under  its  influence  the  person  is  incapable  of 
leading  a  quiet  and  domestic  life.  All  this 
independent  of  the  evil  which  we  do  to  those 
with  whom  we  gamble. 

Sect.  XXVI.  To  the  Churches. — I  speak  of 
them  in  the  plural  number,  for  they  are  now  very 
numerous.     It  should  be  distinctly  understood 


46  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

that  though  they  somewhat  resemble  each  other, 
and  both  claim  authority,  yet  the  two,  Church  and 
State,  are  not  the  same.  The  temptation  on  the 
part  of  the  Romish  Church  is  to  claim  authority 
over  the  state.  The  disposition  of  some  of  the 
Protestant  churches  is  to  make  the  church  sub- 
ject to  the  state.  The  true  position  of  the  two 
is,  that  each  should  have  its  own  position.  The 
churches  should  rule  in  all  spiritual  matters,  in 
expounding  dactrine  and  in  enjoining  church 
orders.  But  the  church  should  not  meddle 
with  money  or  temporalities  of  any  kind,  except 
incidentally  to  secure  buildings  or  stipends  to 
its  ministers.  On  the  other  hand,  the  civil  mag- 
istrate is  not  at  liberty  to  interfere  in  spiritual 
matters,  in  the  government  or  services  of  the 
church.  It  is  quite  possible  that  the  two 
should  so  far  unite,  each  maintaining  its  own 
independence.  But  the  tendency  of  the  present 
day  is  rather  to  keep  the  two  entirely  separate, 
both  favoring  peace  and  high  morality  in  a 
country. 

Sect.  XXVII.  The  State. — The  existence  of 
government  and  of  laws  with  power  of  execution 
is  a  necessity.     Without  these,  and  with  every 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  47 

man  following  the  impulses  of  his  nature,  original 
and  acquired,  this  world  would  be  in  a  state  of 
disquiet,  disorder,  and  crime.  If  people  have 
not  a  government  ready-made  for  them,  they 
must  proceed  to  construct  one. 

In  fact,  government  is  of  divine  appointment, 
being  of  arrangements  made  by  God.  All  the 
arrangements  in  our  world  seem  to  point  to 
this,  and  to  show  that  man  must  have  some  sort 
of  national  government.  True,  it  is  not  deter- 
mined either  by  the  religion  of  nature  or  of 
the  Bible  what  the  nature  of  that  government 
should  be — a  monarchy,  an  aristocracy,  or  a  de- 
mocracy, or  a  mixture  of  the  three  or  of  any 
two  of  them.  This  seems  to  be  left  to  the  judg- 
ment of  mankind  and  the  providential  circum- 
stances in  which  they  are  placed.  But  whatever 
be  the  form  taken,  it  should  always  bear  a  refer- 
ence to  the  divine  authority.  In  this  way  a 
due  place  may  be  given  both  to  the  agency  of 
God  and  the  agency  of  man.  But  to  the  gov- 
ernment, however  formed,  there  must  always  be 
strict  obedience  rendered,  it  being  always  un- 
derstood that  the  government  keeps  within  its 
own  province,  having  to  do  with  men's  Lives  and 
their  property.     Smuggling  of  every  sort  must 


48  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

be  regarded  as  unlawful  and  liable  to  be  pun 
ished,  as  it  is  interfering  with  the  nation's  means 
of  support.  Everything  should  be  provided 
which  promotes  peace  and  order,  and  every- 
thing which  tends  to  war  or  discontent  should 
be  discountenanced  and  removed. 

At  times  it  may  be  important  to  have  the 
legislature  or  the  very  form  of  government 
changed.  It  is  not  easy  to  state  in  definite 
terms  when  a  subject  may  resist  a  government 
and  seek  to  overturn  it.  It  is  time  to  inquire 
into  the  subject  when  any  individual  rights, 
civil  or  religious,  are  interfered  with.  When 
this  is  done  in  any  form  obedience  is  not  re- 
quired. In  no  case  should  a  change  of  govern- 
ment, especially  by  violent  means,  be  attempted, 
except  when  there  is  good  reason  to  behove  that 
the  government  that  succeeds  is  better  than 
that  which  has  been  displaced. 

Sect.  XXVUI.  Wae. — We  should  never  allow 
ourselves  to  look  on  war  except  with  deep  so- 
lemnity. In  it  thousands  or  tens  of  thousands 
of  men  are  seeking  to  destroy  each  other.  But 
there  are  cases  in  which  war  becomes  necessary 
in  stirring  up  a  spirit  of  independence  in  oppo- 


OUR    MORAL    NATURE  40 

sition  to  oppression.  It  calls  forth  the  highest 
feelings  of  bravery,  and  is  the  subject  of  the 
noblest  songs  which  we  sing.  But  in  all  cases 
one  of  the  parties  at  least  is  in  the  wrong,  and 
in  most  cases  both  parties  are  in  the  wrong,  and 
are  responsible  for  the  blood  that  flows.  In  all 
cases  before  engaging  in  war  we  are  to  enquire 
calmly  and  resolutely  whether  the  party  we  es- 
pouse is-  in  the  right,  In  these  days  disputes 
are  settled  more  by  arbitration,  and  it  is  to  be 
hoped  that  the  number  of  wars  wdl  be  fewer. 

Sect.  XXIX.  Duties  to  Oukselves. — Peo- 
ple imagine  that  they  can  do  what  they  jjleasc 
with  themselves,  can  follow  any  whim  or  ca- 
price, can  gratify  any  taste  or  pursue  any  hue 
of  conduct  But  it  is  not  so — we  are  under 
law  to  God. 

We  are  to  attend  to  our  bodies,  we  are  to  con- 
trol and  guide  our  eating  and  drinking,  and  to 
regulate  the  exercise  which  we  take  and  the  air 
which  we  breathe. 

.Self-cultivation  is  a  special  duty.  So  far  as 
God  allows,  we  are  to  improve  every  faculty 
which  God  has  given.  If  there  be  any  special 
gift  which  He  has  bestowed — say  of  philosophy, 


50  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

or  poetry,  or  science  ;  of  business,  or  calculation, 
or  discovery  in  travelling — we  must  reckon  that 
as  a  call  on  the  part  of  God  specially  to  en- 
gage in  it.  Hugh  Miller  told  me  that  if  a  man 
had  great  talents  as  a  stone-mason,  he  should 
follow  the  trade.  The  gifts  of  genius  are  never 
to  be  neglected.  When  they  are  wanting,  the 
want  must  be  supplied  by  industry  and  appli- 
cation. Were  these  duties  attended  to,  the 
world  would  advance  steadily  from  age  to  age 
in  all  that  is  great  and  good. 

The  individual  acts  devolving  on  us  are  too 
many  to  be  enumerated.  But  there  is  a  genei-al 
spirit  to  be  cultivated  which  will  issue  in  the  acts. 
There  is  to  be  a  love  shown  to  all  mankind  in 
the  various  positions  in  which  we  may  be  placed. 
This  is  a  duty  which  we  owe  to  our  fellow-men 
and  to  God,  but  which  we  also  owe  to  ourselves, 
in  order  to  secure  the  influence  which  we  ought 
to  exercise.  There  is  to  be  an  independence  in 
forming  our  opinions,  and  courage  in  carrying 
them  out.  There  is  a  virtue  which  we  owe  to 
God  and  our  fellow-men  and  women,  but  which 
we  owe  specially  to  ourselves  —  it  is  that  of 
chastity  under  every  form. 

Beginning  in  early  life,  we  should  seek  to  ac- 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  51 

quire  good  and  permanent  habits,  especially 
habits  of  self  command,  habits  of  industry,  hab- 
its of  perseverance,  habits  of  thorough  integrity, 
habits  of  charity.  As  the  result  of  these  we  will 
attain  and  maintain  character.  This  will  pre- 
vent us  from  vacillation  or  departing  from  the 
line  we  have  chosen.  It  is  for  this  purpose  that 
the  law  of  habit  is  given  us,  that  it  may  keep  us 
upright  and  stable.  All  this  becoming  known 
to  our  fellow-men,  they  will  respect  us  and  not 
suspect  us  of  hypocrisy  or  deceit  of  any  kind. 
Our  character  will  come  in  the  end  to  stand  as 
a  tower  which  no  one  has  the  courage  to  attack. 

But  in  order  to  accomplish  these  ends  it  is 
not  enough  to  proceed  at  random  or  by  impulse  ; 
'this  can  never  produce  any  lasting  effect  of  a 
beneficent  character.  There  must  special  at- 
tention be  given  to  habits  of  temperance,  mean- 
ing thereby  not  mere  abstinence  from  intem- 
perance or  intoxicants,  but  in  the  government 
of  our  nature,  of  the  tongue,  and  of  all  our  lusts 
and  passions.  All  these  should  be  pressed  upon 
us  till  they  become  parts  of  our  being.  When 
this  is  done  in  a  community  there  is  sure  to  be 
a  general  spirit  of  morality. 

We  are  bound  to  take  all  steps  to  preserve  our 


52  OUR   MORAL   NATURE 

own  life  as  we  do  that  of  others.  He  who  takes 
his  own  existence  is  doing  what  he  has  no  au- 
thority to  do.  He  is  betraying  a  very  precious 
and  solemn  trust  which  has  been  committed  to 
him.     He  is,  in  fact,  guilty  of  murder. 

Nor  let  him  say,  as  the  suicide  often  does, 
that  his  vocation,  that  his  usefulness  is  gone, 
and  that  there  is  no  use  in  preserving  what  can 
only  be  an  incumbrance.  In  fact,  we  are  not  in 
circumstances  to  say  when  our  usefulness  is 
gone.  Though  at  present  incapable  of  doing 
what  we  wish,  the  time  may  come  when  we  can 
accomplish  our  ends,  or  more  important  ends 
than  we  contemplate. 

It  may  be,  one  of  the  greatest  ends  which  we 
can  succeed  in  carrying  out  is  to  show  how  pa- 
tiently, how  magnanimously  we  can  bear  up 
under  the  depression  and  trials  to  which  we  are 
exposed.  It  is  cowardly  to  flee  when  we  should 
fight.  The  very  highest  purposes  may  be  ef- 
fected by  our  being  subjected  to  annoyances 
and  humiliations,  in  bearing  up  against  which 
we  may  accomplish  the  very  noblest  ends. 

In  all  cases  it  lies  not  with  us,  but  with  One 
who  sees  the  end  from  the  beginning,  to  deter- 
mine how  long  we  are  to  hold  by  our  position, 


OUR   MORAL   NATURE  53 

which  we   are  not    to   abandon   till  God    dis- 
misses us. 

T)ie  Consummation. — We  have  shown  that  man 
is  a  moral  agent,  that  he  can  discern  between 
good  and  evil,  and  that  he  is  responsible  to  God 
for  his  opinions  and  his  acts.  We  carry  this 
power  with  us  wherever  we  go.  As  we  do  so  it 
exalts  us  in  the  scale  of  beings.  We  have  with- 
in us  ideas  and  axioms  which  elevate  us  far 
above  surroundings,  above  inanimate  nature, 
and  above  the  lower  creatures  that  serve  us. 


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